South Dakota
North Dakota Marijuana Campaign Turns In More Than Enough Signatures To Put Legalization On The November Ballot, Activists Say
North Dakota activists have turned in what they believe to be more than enough signatures to put a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot.
New Economic Frontier said on Monday they submitted 22,444 signature to qualify the measure. In order to make the ballot, they will need at least 15,582 of those to be valid.
The campaign previously announced that it had reached the halfway point for signatures last month.
A recent poll signals that the campaign has its work cut out for them, however, with a majority of likely North Dakota voters opposing the cannabis measure as activists neared the finish line to collect enough signatures for qualification.
The survey from the founder of independent political action committee Brighter Future Alliance found that 57 percent of voters are against the cannabis reform measure, compared to 43 percent who are in favor.
New Economic Frontier filed its initiative with the state and formally launched the campaign in April.
Under the legalization measure, adults 21 and older would be able to possess up to one ounce of marijuana flower, four grams of concentrate and 300 milligrams of edibles that they could buy from a limited number of licensed dispensaries. Adults could also grow up to three plants for personal use, with a six-plant cap per household.
The state Department of Health and Human Services or another agency designated by the legislature would be responsible for regulating the program. Regulators would need to establish rules to implement the law by October 1, 2025.
North Dakota voters rejected an earlier cannabis legalization proposal at the ballot box two years ago.
The new proposal would limit regulators to approving licenses for up to seven cannabis manufacturers and 18 retailers. There are also provisions meant to avoid creating intrastate monopolies, such as limiting licensees to no more than four dispensaries.
Currently, there are eight medical cannabis dispensaries operating in North Dakota. The initiative requires regulators to develop separate application processes for those businesses to become dual licensees and non-existing companies that wish to become recreational operators.
Unlike other legal states, the proposal in North Dakota doesn’t appear to contain criminal justice reform components favored by equity advocates such as expungements or licensing prioritization for people harmed by the drug war. It also doesn’t seem to contain any references to a proposed tax scheme for legal sales.
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In 2021, North Dakota’s House approved a marijuana legalization bill sponsored by Rep. Jason Dockter (R), but it was ultimately defeated in the Senate after advancing through committee.
Following that defeat, some senators devised a new plan to advance the issue by referring it to voters on the 2022 ballot. The resolution moved through a key committee in 2021, but the Senate also blocked it.
There have been repeated attempts by activists to enact legalization in the Peace Garden state over the years.
Advocates with the separate group North Dakota Cannabis Caucus started collecting signatures to qualify a constitutional amendment legalizing cannabis for the 2022 ballot, but they did not gather enough by deadline.
New Approach ND previously led an effort to place a legalization measure on the 2018 ballot that was defeated by voters. They filed another initiative for 2020, but signature gathering complications largely caused by the coronavirus pandemic got in the way.
North Dakota voters approved a medical cannabis ballot measure in 2016.
Last year, North Dakota’s governor signed a bill allowing patients admitted to hospice care to self-certify as medical marijuana patients.
The North Dakota House of Representatives also approved a resolution last year that encourages residents to buy U.S. flags that are made out of hemp and manufactured in the state.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
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The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 15, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 15 drawing
03-24-32-39-41, Lucky Ball: 18
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Rally against eminent domain for carbon pipelines held at Iowa Capitol
Iowa lawmakers and landowners spoke at a rally at the Iowa Capitol Rotunda against eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines.
PIERRE, S.D. — The South Dakota coalition that successfully pushed for a state ban on eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines last winter will propose broader limits on eminent domain and more protections for landowners this legislative session.
Sen. Mark Lapka, R-Leola, announced the efforts. One would send a proposed state constitutional amendment to voters in November that would further restrict eminent domain.
“Codified law is too easily amendable over time,” Lapka said. “It’s the constitutionally protected rights that hold firm forever.”
The amendment would “eliminate eminent domain for private gain,” Lapka said, while allowing for public works projects such as public highways, water lines and other infrastructure.
Eminent domain is a legal process for gaining access to privately owned land when a deal can’t be reached with landowners. It’s often used for public infrastructure projects. It became controversial in South Dakota when Iowa-based Summit Carbon Solutions attempted to use it for a five-state pipeline that would capture carbon dioxide from ethanol plants and transport it to an underground sequestration site in North Dakota. The project would benefit from federal tax credits incentivizing the prevention of heat-trapping emissions into the atmosphere.
Landowner opposition to the Summit project in South Dakota culminated in the Legislature’s passage of a law last year banning carbon pipelines from using eminent domain. Summit is still pursuing the project and has permits in other states, but has been denied permits twice by South Dakota’s Public Utilities Commission.
Lapka announced his new proposals at a property rights rally Monday in the state Capitol rotunda, attended by dozens of South Dakota farmers, ranchers and lawmakers.
SD bill named after Jared Bossly of Aberdeen
Along with the constitutional amendment, Lapka announced what he’s calling the “Bossly Bill,” named for Jared Bossly, of rural Aberdeen, who is suing Summit Carbon Solutions for allegedly trespassing on his land while it was asserting its right to use eminent domain.
Lapka said the bill will mirror language in a decision by the South Dakota Supreme Court in 2024. The decision said Summit had not proven it was a common carrier. That meant the company could not use eminent domain to access landowners’ property.
Lapka’s bill would “clean up” the language that exists in state law, he said, and protect against “invasive tactics.”
There was a bill introduced last legislative session that would have empowered citizens to sue for allegedly deceptive practices, fraud, harassment, intimidation or misrepresentation during the acquisition of land access agreements by carbon pipeline land agents. The bill narrowly failed in the Senate after passing the House.
The text of the bills announced by Lapka had not been released as of Monday afternoon. The 2026 session of the South Dakota Legislature begins Tuesday and continues through March.
South Dakota Searchlight is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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